Electric hair brush



Sept. 5, 1939. H/c. HALUss ELECTRIC HAIR BRUSH Filed Feb. 7, 19258 2- Sheets-Sheet l lax /2/ INVENTOR Hans Cor/ Hav/U55 ATTORNEY Sept 5, 1939. HA C. HALuss 2,172,024

ELECTRIC HAIR BRUSH Filed Feb. 7, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Hans Car/HayL/SS ATTORN EY Patented Sept. 5, 1939 UNITED STATES ELECTRIC HAIR BRUSH Hans Carl Haluss,Y New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada Application February 7, 1938, Serial N0. 189,217

7 Claims.

This invention relates toy an improved electric hair brush particularly for human use.

An object of the present invention is the provision of an electric hair brush adapted to remove dandruf and foreign matter from the hair and scalp.

Another object is the provision of an electric hair brush capable of removing excess oil from the hair and scalp Withoutremoving all the nat- 10- ural oil therefrom.

Another object is the provision of an electric hair brush adapted to massage the scalp.

A further object is the provision of a comb, in combination with an electric hair brush, adapted not only to combl the hair but to form partings or furrows therein to permit the bristles of the brush to reach the scalp to remove dandruff and dirt therefrom.

A further object is the provision of a comb, in combination with an electric hair brush, designed to massage the scalp by transferring vibrations thereto without hurting the head and without damaging the scalp or hair.

Yet another object is the provision of an improved rotary brush and comb combined with means for massaging the scalp.

A still further object is the provision of a device of the character described, of durable and compact construction and which may be very easily handled.

It is well known that brushing cleans the hair and that massaging the scalpl by vibrations envigorates it. The present invention combines these operations so that one treatment cleans 35' both the hair and the scalp. This has never been done before.

The combination of a comb and a rotary brush has been used for cleaning short-haired animals but the kno-Wn devices cannot be used satisfactorily upon human beings or long-haired animals. The reason forl this is that the combs of these devices merely stir up thehair in order to loosen the dirt to be removed by the rotary brush. These grooming devices would not clean the comparatively long hair of a human being since the brush cannot reach to the scalp. The comb merely stirs up the hair but does not partit to a sufficient extent as to permit the brush to get right to the bottom thereof, with the result that only the outer surface of the hair would be cleaned. The present invention overcomes this difficulty by providing, in combination with a rotary brush, a comb adapted to reach right down to the scalp and to form furrows in the hair which are long enough to permit the bristles of the brush to contact the scalp. The furrows are of such a shape, in cross section, that the brush not only cleans the scalp but it cleans the hair right from the roots to the ends thereof. The comb of this invention is such that it maintains the brush at a 5. proper distance from the head and acts as a guide for the whole device. The combs of the known devices could not be used for this purpose since they would certainly cut or injure the scalp. 10

The comb of the present invention is also used to transmit vibrations to the scalp in order to massage it as the hair is combed and brushed. Here again, the combs of the known devices could not act in this capacity since they are rela- 15 tively sharp and, therefore, would hurt the scalp.

At the present time, the common method of cleaning the scalp and hair of human beings is by shampooing. This takes cosiderable time and is bad for the hair since it` completely removes the natural oils from both the scalp andthe hair. This makes the hair dull, dry and brittle so that it appears lifeless and breaks easily. In contrast to this, the present invention provides a hair brush by means of whiclr the hair and scalp may be quickly and completely cleaned Without re moving the natural oils although means is provided for removing the excess oils.

This invention consists essentially of an electric hair-brush having a rotary brush mounted 30 therein, means for rotating said brush, a comb mounted beneath the brush with means for forming furrows in the hair to permit the bristles of the brush to' reach the scalp, and a casing associated with the brush adapted to rotate in` an 35 elliptical path to create vibrations which are transmitted to` the scalp by the comb, as more fully described in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which 40 Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional View of the electrical hair brush, taken along the line l-l of Fig. 2, with the bristles of the brush in a position to Contact the scalp,

Figure 2 is a plan view of the electrical brush with the cover removed and certain parts broken away to show the interior thereof,

Figure 3 is la vertical section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1,

Figure 4 is a perspective View of the vibratory casing,

Figures 5 to 8 inclusive, are fragmentary views similar to Fig. 1, which, along with Fig. 1, show the movement of the rotary brush through one complete revolution or cycle, 5

Figure 9 is a bottom plan view of the comb of the electric hair brush,

Figure 10 is a sectional View of the comb taken along the line IIJ-I of Fig. 9,

Figure 11 is a vertical sectional View of the casing shown in Fig. 4, and

Figure 12 is a perspective view of the electric hair brush.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, A is the electric hair brush in which I 0 is a base plate having an enlarged opening I I therein Which is preferably closer to the rearward end I2 than to the forward end I3 of said base plate. A brush compartment I4 is formed over the opening II of the base plate I 0 by a shield I5 and side plates I and I'I, which side plates are spaced inwardly from the sides of the base plate. rIhe shield I5 extends upwardly and rearwardly in a curve from the forward end of the opening I I and terminates in a short flap I8 spaced above and lying parallel to the base plate while the rearward ends of the side plates I6 and I7 diverge outwardly as extensions and 2I, respectively. The flap I8, the extensions 20 and 2l and the base plate I form a short passage 22 at the rearward end of the compartment I4, into which a brush 23 removably ts, said brush having a plurality of bristle tufts 24 extending into the compartment and a handle 25 extending outwardly therefrom. A cover or casing 25 removably ts over the base plate VIl) enclosing the operating compartment I4 and forming a motor compartment 2l in which a small electric motor 23 is mounted. A switch mounted in the cover 26, is connected by wires 3l to the motor and a socket 32 also mounted in the cover 25 beside the switch 3), is adapted to receive one end of a lead cord 33, the other end of which may be connected to any suitable electrical outlet.

A main shaft 34 journallecl in the side plates I5 and Il, extends laterally of the compartment I4 above the opening II in the base plate I5. This shaft is circular in cross section at its ends while the central portion thereof is rectangular in cross section, as at 35. Two diametrically opposed sets of bristle tufts 35 and 37 extend outwardly from the shaft 34, with the outer end of each tuft substantially V-shaped, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. One end of the shaft 34 extends through the side plate I6 and has a pulley 38 mounted thereon, which pulley-is connected by a suitable belt 4I! to a pulley 4I mounted on the drive shaft 42 of the motor 28. The shaft 34 and the sets of bristle tufts 35 and 31 form a brush 43 adapted to be rotated by the motor 28. When the brush 43 rotates, the outer ends of the bristle tufts thereof move along a circular path, indicated by the circle 44 in Fig. 5.

A pair of discs 45 and 46 are mounted exactly opposite each other on the inner surfaces of the side plates i6 and I'I, respectively. These discs are mounted eccentrically in relation to the shaft 34 so that the ends of the shaft extend through said discs at points adjacent the peripheries and the bottoms thereof.

A casing 41, see Fig. 4, is adapted to be mounted in the compartment I4. This casing may take the form of a cylinder or a cylindroid or it may be shaped as shown. In the drawings, two sets of diametrically opposed, substantially semi-cylindrical structures 48 and 5t are combined to form the casing 4l'. suitably shaped blocks 5I are fitted in the semi-cylindrical structures 48 with their inner surfaces 52 spaced apart and parallel to each other. The inner surfaces 52 of the blocks 5I and the structures 59 form an elongated slot or guideway 53 extending longitudinally and centrally of the casing 47, which slot or guideway has parallel sides and semicircular ends. Each block 5I is formed with a slot 54 extending outwardly from the guideway 53 and through the casing 47, said slot gradually widening towards the guideway, as at 55. The slots 54 do not extend the full length of the casing 4l but terminate short of each end of the casing. Guide or bearing passages 56 extend through each block 5I and the casing between each end of the slots 54 and the adjacent ends of said casing.

The casing 4l mounted in the compartment I4, surrounds the main shaft 34 with the eccentric discs 45 and 45 extending into the opposite en ds of the guideway 53 and the opposing sets of bristle tufts 36 and 3l extending through the slots 54. The main shaft 34 is provided adjacent the ends of the rectangular section thereof with twosets of diametrically opposed, radial rods 51 which extend outward into the guide or bearing passages 55. The rods 5? cause the casing 4l to rotate with the shaft 34 and, at the same time, permit a'reciprocating motion of the casing. Y

A comb 58 secured to the bottom of the base plate I, is provided centrally thereof with an enlarged opening 6i) registering with the opening II of said base plate. vRecesses 6I having curved bottoms S2, are formed in Ythe comb 58 at eachside of the opening Eil. The comb is formed with a plurality of elongated, substantially V-sha'ped teeth 63 at its forward end and at each side thereof with substantially V-shaped runners or teeth 54 which extend the full length of the comb. The teeth 53 extend from the forward end of the comb rearwardly to a point overlapping the opening 60 while the forward ends of said teeth and the teeth 54 preferably extend outwardly from the comb and taper downwardly to a point, as at 65. While the comb 58 has been shown as an independent unit it will be understood that the teeth 63 and 64 could be mounted directly on the bottom of the base plate I 0.

In use, the electric hair brush is drawn over the scalp in the direction of the arrow 66 (Fig. l), and the brush rotates in the direction of the arrow 6l (also Fig. 1). The rotary brush 43 rotates in a circle while a rotary and reciprocatory motion are simultaneously imparted to the casing 41 so that the outer surfaces of the structures 43 move along a substantially elliptical path illustrated by the ellipse 68 in Fig. 5. This elliptical'movement is due to the fact that the discs 45 and 45 are mounted excentrically in relation to the shaft 34 which results in the casing 4T moving back and forth over the discs within the limits vof the guideway 53, as said casing is rotated about the discs. In other words, the centre of rotation of the casing is constantly changing as distinct from the centre of rotation of the rotary brush which remains stationary. There are times when the casing and the rotary brush are concentric but the casing rotates eccentrically to said brush during the greater part of the time.

A complete cycle of the rotary brush 43 and the casingli is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 5 to 8, inclusive. The bristle tufts 35 and 31 of the rotary brush are of such length that when the brush is in a Vertical position, as in Fig. 1,:the

CTI

outer ends of the lowermost set of 'bristle' tufts lie in the same plane as the lower edges of the teeth t3 and. consequently, contact the scalp.

In Fig. 1 the bristle tufts 3l are extending downwardly and the casing 4T has just started to move towards the tips thereof. In Fig. 5 the brush has swung away from the scalp and the casing has moved further towards the tips of the tufts. In Fig. 6 the casing has moved outwardly until the bristle tufts are completely encased within the slot 54 thereof. This'outward movement of the casing in conjunction with centrifugal force cleans 'the coarse dirt, dandruif and loose hairs off the bristles. In Fig. '7 the casing has receded from the tips of the bristle tufts 3l which are just about to pass through the bristle tufts 2li of the brush 23. In Fig. 8 the bristle tufts 3l have passed through the bristle tufts 2li which remove the finer dirt or dandruff and the oil from the tufts 3l and the casing has receded to its farthest point away from the tips thereof. The coarse dirt and hair removed from the rotary brush are carried by centrifugal force and guided by the shield l5 to the bristle tufts 2t; The brush 23 may be removed from time to time for cleaning. While a complete cycle of the bristle tufts 31 has been described, it will readily be seen that the cycle of the bristle tufts 35 is exactly the same. By referring to Fig. 8, it will be seen that when the casing il has moved so that the tufts 36 are completely encased therein, the other side of the casing has receded to its innermost point with regard to the tufts 3l. The slots 54 in the blocks 5i of the casing lil are of suflicient depth to permit the casing to be moved outwardlyI far enough to completely encase the bristle tufts 36 and 3?, The inner ends of these slots gradually widen towards the guideway 53 so as to guide the bristles of the bristle tufts back into the slot should any of them become displaced there.-

from.

As the hair brush A is moved along the scalp, the teeth '63 divide the hair into a plurality of substantially V-shaped furrows. The furrows extend right down to the scalp and the teeth 63 are of such length that the furrows remain. open longv enough to permit the bristle tufts of the rotary brush @3 to enter thereinto. As stated n above, the outer ends of the bristle tufts 36 and 3l are substantially V-shaped. Consequently, when these bristle tufts enter the furrows created by the teeth 53, the tips of the tufts clean the scalp while the sloping sides of the V-shaped ends thereof clean the sloping sides of the furrows.` In this way, the brush cleans the scalp and the hair right down to the roots as the hair brush is moved along the head. The rotary brush is rotated at a high speed so that the bristle tufts thereof Contact the scalp and the hair many times as the hair brush progresses. The points 65 ensure the teeth 63 digging into the hair right down to the scalp in place of passing over the outer surface of the hair.

As the rotary brush moves from the position shown in Fig. l, the bristle tufts are withdrawn from the hair while the casing M simultaneously moves towards the tips thereof. This outward movement of the casing at this point prevents the bristles from drawing any hair up into the compartment ifi thus preventing the hair from being damaged. The ends of the casing 41 ride through the recesses of the comb 58 during the rotation of said casing, and the curved bottom of each recess is concentric with the elliptical path of the casing so that the hair cannot become entangled or caught between the ends of the casing andv the side plates I5 and Il'.

InI the above, the casing il has been described as a brush cleaner.. However, this casing has another purpose and that is it acts as a vibrator. This casing rotates through an elliptical path with the result that it creates a vibration through the eccentric discs i5 and et, the side plates I6 and il' and the base lil, which vibration is transmitted to the scalp by the teeth B3 and 65 of the comb. The teeth 63 are fairly long while the teeth 64 are quite a length with the result that the vibrations are transmitted simultaneously to a relatively large area of the scalp, In this way, the scalp is massaged as well as being brushed and cleaned, when the hair brush A is drawn over the scalp. The length of the teeth 63 and 64 prevent said teeth from digging into the scalp as a result of the vibration.

From the above, it will be seen that the teeth of the comb 58 divide the hair into furrows to permit the bristle tufts of the rotary brush to reach and clean the scalp and clean the hair right down to the roots; the casing il prevents the hair from being drawn into the compartment lll and at the same time, it removes the coarse dirt, dandruif and loose hair from said tufts, which dirt, dandruif and hair is deposited upon the bristle tufts of the brush 23 which also e relatively large area of the scalp without injuring This electric hair brush which is small, durable and easily handled, cleans all the dirt and loose dandrulf from the scalp and hair, removes loose hair and excess oil without removing all the natural oil which is essential to the welfare of the hair, and massages the scalp to stimulate the growth of the hair.

Various modifications may be made in this invention without departing from the spirit thereof or the scope of the claims, and therefore the exact forms shown are to be taken as illusn trative only and not in a limiting sense, and it is desired that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are disclosed in the prior art or are set lforth in the accompanying claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a rotary brush mounted in the casing over said opening, said brush having a pliuality of bristle tufts adapted to project through the opening, means in the casing for rotating the brush, and a plurality of longitudinally extending elongated teeth mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles project'- ing through the opening therein, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair to permit the bristle tufts to reach the scalp during the rotation of the rotary brush.

2. An electric hair brush comprising a casing vhaving an opening in the bottom thereof, a rotary brush mounted in the casing over said opening, said brush having a plurality of bristle tufts adapted to project through the opening, means in the casing for rotating the brush, and a plurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth of V-shape cross section mounted on the bottom off the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein and extending beneath part of said opening, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair and to retain the furrows open to permit the bristle tufts to reach the scalp during the rotation of the rotary brush.

3. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a rotary brush mounted in the casing over said opening, said brush having a plurality of bristle tufts adapted to project through the opening, each bristle tuft being V-shaped at its outer end, means in the casing for rotating the brush, and a plurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth of V-shape cross section mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein, the rearward ends of the teeth overlapping the ope-ning and the forward ends thereof extending away from said brush and downwardly to a point, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair and to retain the furrows open to permit the V-shaped ends of the bristle tufts to reach the scalp during the rotation of the rotary brush.

4. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a compartment formed in the casing over said opening, a brush removably mounted in the casing having bristle tufts extending into the compartment, a rotary brush mounted in the compartment, said brush having a plurality of bristle tufts adapted to pass through the bristle tufts of the nrst brush and to project through the opening as the rotary brush rotates, means in the casing for rotating the latter brush, and a plurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair to permit the bristle tufts of the rotary brush to reach the scalp. Y

5. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a compartment formed in the casing over said opening, a brush removably mounted in the casing having bristle tufts extending into the compartment, a rotary brush mounted in the compartment, said brush having two diametrically opposed sets of bristle tufts adapted to pass through the bristle tufts of the first brush and to project through the opening as the rotary brush rotates, means in the casing for rotating the latter brush, and a plurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein and extending beneath part of said opening, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair and to retain the furrows open to permit the b-ristle tufts to reach the scalp during the rotation of the rotary brush.

6. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a compartment formed in the casing over said opening, a brush removably mounted in the casing having bristle tufts extending into the compartment, a rotary brush mounted in the compartment, said brush having two diametrically opposed sets of bristle tufts adapted to pass through the bristle tufts of the first brush and to project through the opening as the rotary brush rotates, each bristle tuft being V-shaped at its outer end, means in the casing for rotating the latter brush, a plurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth of V-shape cross section mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein, the rearward ends of the teeth extending beneath part of the end of the opening, said teeth being adapted to form furrows in the hair and to retain the furrows open to permit the -V-shaped ends of the bristle tufts to reach the scalp during the rotation of the rotary brush, and additional teeth spaced apart greater than the width of the rotary brush mounted on and extending substantially the entire length of the bottom of the casing.

'7. An electric hair brush comprising a casing having an opening in the bottom thereof, a compartment formed in the casing over said opening, a brush removably mounted in the casing having bristle tufts extending into the compartment, a rotary brush mounted in the compartment, said brush having two diametrically opposed sets of bristle tufts'adapted to pass through the bristle tufts of the first brush and to project through the opening as the rotary brush rotates, each bristle tuft being V -shaped at its outer end, means in the casing for rotating the latter brush, means associated` with the rotary brush for creating vi brations in the compartment, a p-lurality of longitudinally extending, elongated teeth of V- shape cross section mounted on the bottom of the casing immediately in advance of and in line with the bristles projecting through the opening therein, said teeth being adapted to form furrowsin the hair and to retain the furrows open to permit the V-shaped tips of the bristle tufts to reach therscalp during the rotation of the rotary brush, and a relatively long tooth of V-shape cross section mounted on the bottom of the casing along each side of the opening therein, said'latter tee-th along with the former teeth being adapted to transmit the vibrations from the compartment to the scalp over a relatively large area thereof.

HANS CARL HALUSS. 

